See Saint Run
See Saint Run
Joshua 7:4-6a So about three thousand men went up there from the people. And they fled before the men of Ai, and the men of Ai killed about thirty-six of their men and chased them before the gate as far as Shebarim and struck them at the descent. And the hearts of the people melted and became as water. Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the LORD until the evening, he and the elders of Israel.
The first sign that a saint is under the discipline of the LORD is that he flees in terror from opposition forces. This has been the case with many biblical heroes during their prodigal moments and rebellious seasons. Think of Abraham, when he lied about his wife being his sister for fear of Pharaoh, and Jacob, when he stole his brother’s birthright and then effectively hid out in a foreign land for seven years, and Adam, when he ran around from tree to tree after eating forbidden fruit to hide from the consuming fire of God’s gaze. Oh, sin is so much fun! But it leaves you on the run.
This fall at Ai was forewarned by Moses in Deuteronomy 28:25, as he explicitly laid out the consequences of rebellion against God in these words: “The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them.” See saint run—that’s the sign of compromise. You can be a valiant warrior one day, and march through an impassable river, and trumpet a hymn to the rhythm of crumbling Jericho walls, and feast on the fat of a fertile, flourishing promised land, but still run for your life the very next if there’s a little leaven in the lump.
How it must’ve broken Joshua’s heart to watch thirty-six of his comrades fall on the battlefield, not in a blaze of defiant glory like Davy Crockett at the Alamo, but in a mad dash like fleeing deer before a hunting band. Friend, if you’ve been running scared for a while, maybe it’s time for you to fall on your knees before the Holy One and get to the bottom of your compromise. You’ll never be strong against enemy forces if you’re carrying idols in your arsenal.